18th Century and Earlier Drawings

An elegant 18th-century red crayon drawing depicting a muscular male arm grasping a staff, executed with fine hatching, subtle shading, and anatomical precision indicative of academi...

An authentic, perfect and bright, originally hand-colored, illustration of 4 Parrots on parchment paper (copper engraving). It has a fine shining because of the authenticly applied e...

18th century Italian drawing, "The Theological Virtues" in pen and brow ink, blue washes. By Fidele Fischetti, Naples 1732 - 1792. A good size drawing in an 18th century gilt wood f...

An authentic, perfect and bright, originally hand-colored, illustration of 2 Parrots and 2 Parakeets: L' Ara Rouge, La Perruche a face bleue, L' Ara Verd and La Perruche Tabuan. Draw...

Ancient engraving, map of the earth with circling zodiac "Situs Terrae Circulis Coelestibus Circumnate"

Title: Eagle Head Artist: Attributed to William Bartram (American, 1739–1823) Date: Late 18th century Medium: Pen and ink on laid paper Dimensions: 13.5 × 15.875 in. (framed)...

Decorate a living room wall or study with this elegant and colorful 18th-century Aubusson gouache painting. Created in the renowned tapestry-making city of Aubusson, France circa 176...

A rare and fascinating group of three drawings, beautifully presented together in modern frames with UV-protective glass and surrounded by high-quality black pasteboard mounts. This ...

This is an exceptional original drawing by renowned Italian Renaissance master Camillo Procaccini (signed lower right with initials), born in Parma in 1561 and active mainly in Mila...

Late 18th–Early 19th Century Pencil Drawing of a Hunting Dog A charming and finely observed pencil drawing depicting a hunting dog in an expressive, playful stance. Executed in the ...

Two-faced drawing. Studies of characters and harbor scene. With an inscription stating it is from the sketchbook in the collection of Dr. Manuel de Espirito Santo in Lisbon. Ink a...

Charcoal and chalk portrait drawing on card by renowned Dutch painter Caspar Netscher (Heidelberg/Prague 1639-1684 The Hague) depicting a lady of means...

This fine small drawing in sanguine on paper is from the collection of Phillips Hathaway. Retired investment banker, former Sothebys expert and once a World War II pilot. Known for h...

A black ink and sepia wash drawing by French artist Jean-Baptiste Le Prince of a classical scene of Roman soldiers with camel signed and dated lower left. T...

This Mughal miniature was painted at one of the princely courts of India. It depicts a raven-haired princess in a gold-trimmed saffron-colored silk sari. Under a glowering evening sky she dawdles on a white marble terrace, with a pet fawn on a leash, before a landscape dotted with buildings nestled amongst trees beyond a river. Her hair, falling loosely about her shoulders, rather than carefully dressed on her head, indicates that she is a maiden. The overall mood is one of expectancy. Perhaps walking a pet and catching an evening breeze is a pretext to escape palace scrutiny for a lovers’ assignation. In Mughal India tender sentiments were a bridge to the erotic – and if this seems contradictory, so too is the balance of realism and caricature, and naturalism with the schematic. Both are hallmarks of miniatures painted in this place and time. The earliest Mughal Indian miniatures date to the 16th century. They were inspired by those painted at the refined Moslem courts of the neighboring Persian empire. They incorporated figures in spite of the Moslem faith’s proscription against depicting the human form. Such was the nature of sophisticated courtly life everywhere that beauty and pleasure trumped systems of morality. This was no less the case at the provincial Indian courts, where our miniature, marked by a charming pictorial naiveté, was most likely painted. Yet the artist was undeniably accomplished. His command of perspective, introduced by Jesuit missionaries in the 17th century, is seen in the landscape, which rolls back to a distant horizon, contrary to the flat two-dimensional ones following Indian-painting traditions. And if Mughal artists were influenced by Western art, the compliment was returned by Rembrandt and Sir Joshua Reynolds, among others, who collected Indian miniatures (as did, perhaps, Giovanni Bellini who painted in Mughal style the famous miniature of a Persian man...

This charming drawing is a preliminary study for the larger drawing, Trois etudes de femme assise, coiffee d'une fontange, in the British Museum. This little gem comes from Brooke A...

A rare 18 century perspective view engraving of the Salon de la Menagerie at Versailles, attributed to Antoine Aveline retailed in Paris by Nicolas Langlois and executed with the per...

Decorate a wall with this charming antique Aubusson tapestry cartoon, crafted in France circa 1780. Protected behind glass and presented in a wide molded frame with gilt trim, the ha...

An important mounted battle scene, depicted with particularly expressive energy: cavalry in full frontal clash, overturned horses, and combatants intertwined in the foreground, in ...

Italian Lake Palace Ink Drawing. Italian ink drawing of island palace La Casina Vanvitelliana sul Lago Fusaro. Eighteenth century ink on paper drawing in a...

This very fine drawing from the early Baroque period is in Sanguine on laid paper. this Italian drawing in a rich brown-red is framed in a fine old gilded frame...

This work likely Italian dates from circa 1680-1700. It relates directly to a 16th century engraving of the same subject after a drawing by Giul...

Neoclassical capriccio view of majestic Roman ruins with small figures engaged in daily activities in the background. Pencil, ink and wash on paper. Set in a Louis XVI style giltwood...

An authentic, perfect and bright, originally hand-colored, illustration of 3 Cockatoos: Le Kakatoes a Huppe Rouge, Le Kakatoes a Huppe Jaune and Le Kakatoes a Huppe Blanche. Also 1 s...

Artist unknown for this pair of pineapple paintings from 17th century. Beautifully gilt-framed and matted.

Watercolor Portrait by John Downman (British, 1750-1824) Portrait of Miss Bulteel of Devon Depicted in profile with a pink headdress Watercolor and chalk on paper, signed John Downma...

18th century German, a hand-colored engraving of a dressage horse and rider from Description du Manège Moderne by Friedrich Wilhelm, Baron Rais d' Eisenberg (German, ca. 1700-ca. 1770). Engraved by Bernard Picart (French, 1673-1733). Titled "Le Brillant", this dressage engraving is plate XXXIII. There is a gallery label verso. The print is matted and framed under UF-3 plexiglass, which offers the maximum amount of UV protection (approx. 97%). This print was originally part of an illustrated book Baron d'Eisenberg made describing the art of the cavaliers and depicting the different breeds of horses- The full title of the book is L'Art de Monter a Cheval: ou Description du Manége Moderne, Dans sa Perfection, published in Leipzig: Arkstée et Merkus, 1747). A set of 7 framed engravings from the same book sold at Sotheby's for $9,500 (plus tax and buyers premium). Reference: The author, a German horseman and artist, spent some of his youth at the manège of Saxe-Weimar before entering into the service of the Emperor. He then spent six years in Naples as the Master of Horse of the Viceroy before returning to Vienna where he studied under M. de Regenthal, the imperial Master of Horse. He participated in the coronation of the Emperor Charles V at Frankfurt in 1711, then spent some time in England, but was back in Germany before 1753. He probably died in Tuscany where he was Director and Master of the Horse at the Academy in Pisa. Brunet II, 957; Mennessier de la Lance I, p. 438. The Baron wrote several important and lavishly illustrated books on horses: his Description du manège moderne dans sa perfection, London 1727, and Dictionnaire des termes du manège moderne, 1747, being the best well-known. He dedicated Description du Manège Moderne to King George II and to his son, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales. Subscribers to the book included royalty and nobility from all over Europe. The engraver was Bernard Picart, born in Paris in 1673. He gained honors at the Academy of Paris at the age of sixteen. He was a master designer and engraver and worked in Paris and Amsterdam until his death in 1733. Dimensions: 9"h x 12"w (sight), 16.5"h x 19.25"w (frame) Condition: Good, some rippling to sheet, not examined out of frame. Provenance: Lombard Antiquarian Maps & Prints, Cape Elizabeth...

2.nd Half of the 18th cenutury, hand-colored The pictures are showing dance scenes based on Etrukian vase painting.

A charming and decorative collection of nine Italian hand-colored bird engravings, beautifully presented in matching frames with newly added mats. Each engraving features delicately ...

Kids Playing Ghost Wall Art Pencil on Paper Brown Wash Decorative object framed. The Original Artist: Richard Westall / Title: A Ghost, engraved by Luigi Schiavonetti (1765-1810), pub. by T. Simpson, 1791A Ghost, engraved by Luigi Schiavonetti (1765-1810), pub. by T. Simpson, 1791, (attaching a colored picture ) . other known artwork Building with a Turret 1790 and many portraits that he was known for. Over the Centuries and the decades, many artists recreated the Artwork and then later copies were made of them. THE ARTWORK WE ARE OFFERING IS NOT A STIPPLE PRINT...

A Double-sided Drawing: Studies of a Man Holding a Horn Madonna and Child with Saint John the Baptist, and study for an Ecce Homo Black chalk on buff paper 14 3/4″ high x 10 3/8″ wi...

3 antique 18 th c Italian ink drawings on paper of views of Venice- Dougaba and Santa Maria church, Piazza San Marco with Campanile, Venice fort. framed later. Inscribed and dated.

A Portrait Of A Lady Of Quality, Oil On Canvas, 18th Century

An intriguing 18th-century drawing, dated May 6, 1780 (or possibly 1770). This delicate artwork depicts the portrait of a young woman, executed with exceptional skill and attention t...

We are delighted to offer for sale this exquisite circa 1750 French school chalk on paper sketch of a classical landscape in charcoal and pen A beautiful example of the French sch...

Veneto, Italy, early 18th century Oil on canvas 20th century frame carved and gilded in pure gold Dimensions: cm W 93 x H 78,5 x D 5.

Some portraits capture a moment—others preserve an era. Here, a late 18th-century English drawing of a young girl stands as a record of changing taste and sensibility. The neoclassi...

Rare 18th century Old master drawing of an explicit erotic scene of an couple having oral sex. Brown ink on paper with watermark, over pre-studies in black ch...

Francesco Bartolozzi (1727–1815) — Red Chalk Drawing, 18th Century Medium: Red chalk on paper Artist: Francesco Bartolozzi (attr.) Origin: Italy, 18th Century Frame Dimensions: App...

Three small 18th century engravings of fountains at the gardens of Versailles by renowned Parisian engraver Antoine Aveline. All three are pr...

Engraving of the commemorative medal and decoration of the Sea Battle of Doggersbank 1781, by Noach van der Meer After an earlier print by Jacobus Buys. Published in Beschrijving...

17th century, pair of ink drawings on paper with studies for grotesques, friezes and helmets. Painter of central Italy of the 17th century, signed with monogram “A.M.”. Measurements: cm L 45.5 x H 59.5 x 5.5; cm 22 x 33 / cm L 46.5 x H 59 x 5.5; cm 22.5 x 31.5 The pair of sheets, in good condition, is framed by antique frames in carved and gilded wood. They show some china studies with some studies for different subjects. Specifically, the first sheet represents the design of a frieze of Renaissance taste under which are some studies probably referring to a family coat of arms. Below the center is a monogram “A.M.”. The sheet is also worked on the back in which are drawn some articulated elements of decoration in the style of the Renaissance grotesque...

This is an antique hospital engraving. An English, framed lithograph of medical interest, dating to the Georgian period and later, circa 1755. A fine...

Pair of 18th century hand-colored armorial engravings in giltwood frames.

An 18th Century animal study. Accompanied with period letters from the draftsman whom intended to sell these works as reference materials to sculptors in Augsburg. C1750, Germany. ...

Group of 4 (individual) lithographs of important men of their day. Finely detailed. Framed and matted with bone linen matte. Silver-leafed frames. 21 available.

Serpent & Galleon, Ink on Paper, in an 18th Century GiltWood Frame.

Set of etchings of views of a Greek ceremonial klismos chair. In his fifties, G.B. Piranesi was interested in archaeology and studied in Southern Ita...

Interesting coat of arms painted in blazon, surrounded by foliage, with a sort of phylactery on which is noted the name of Cornelia BOLSIUS. In the centre, three protected crossbow ...

A rare and intellectually fascinating 18th Century French hand-coloured chronological chart titled “Chronologie Figurée pour l'Intelligence de l'Histoire des Révolutions des Empires ...

A pair of wash drawings of Sir John and Lady Stanley and their children John Thomas and Isabella. Sir John's spaniel is also in the picture. By H Jouvry dated 1798 and 1799 In bird...

Pair of Neoclassical period red sanguine on paper drawings of seated male nudes, two academical studies of nude men, Italian drawing works on paper after Procaccini, dating back to l...

Jacobus Houbraken - 1698-1780 Pair of Dutch 18thC Line Engravings depicting bust-length portraits of a gentleman and a lady engraved inscriptions to the margins 16.5" x 23"h

Lovely etching on paper in back ink by Giovanni Antonio Canal (Canaletto). Measurements: 22" x 15" Hand-numbered in pencil at the bottom ri...

Large manuscript sheet with Gregorian Chant on parchment "Sacerdos In Eternum" Gregorian Chant composition book sheet as wall decoration, Spain before XVth century...

18th century French study of a painting of an allegory. Gold giltwood frame with salmon color moiré fabric around matting. Drawing measures 6" H x 8.5" W. Much of the white you see ...

'Grand Tour' old master drawing of a seated male nude antique statue torso Italy 18th century or older Drawing (sight): 15" W x 20.75" H; Framed: 25.5" W x 32" H x 2" D. An exquisite 'Grand Tour' Old Master drawing from Italy, dating back to the 18th century or even earlier. This captivating piece measures 32 inches high by 25.5 inches wide when framed.  This finely executed Grisaille chalk/pencil artwork measures 20.75 inches in height and 15 inches in width within its later neoclassical frame. The drawing skillfully captures the essence of a Roman antique-carved marble male torso...

18th Century framed fashion engraving. Gilding on frame is damaged (see picture).

It is not easy to find this kind of hand drawed and hand-made French wallpaper in good conditions. The shining turquoise and the scenes of the games of the characters and jugglers i...

An 18th Century animal study. Accompanied with period letters from the draftsman whom intended to sell these works as reference materials to sculptors in Augsburg. C1750, Germany. ...